Behind Enemy Lines

Chapter 24

Chapter 24
(Last chapter and then the epilogue! X.X)

I gave Gemma a suspicious look as she walked into the room, happiness and excitement etched all over her face.

"What's up with you?" I question, the book I had previously been reading lowered in my lap.

She gave me this smile that looked like there was something seriously good happening but the deviousness told me that it was going to be a little difficult to spot the "good" in whatever situation happened or was going to happen.

She shrugged and sang, "Nothing."

Marking my page and shutting the book, I set it on the table next to me and raised my eyebrows at her, "You know you're an awful liar, right?"

Gemma dropped her draw, "I am not! I'm a fantastic liar!"

"There you go again," I pointed out, "lying and such."

"Okay, maybe I'm not a good liar. But I am an excellent secret-keeper," She boasts.

I exhale heavily through my nose, "I'm sure you are, Gemma."

She nodded, "Damn straight I am-- I haven't even told you that Hayden's taking you out on a d-- oh shit."

I started laughing at her slip up until I stopped after realized what she had been saying, "Wait-- he's taking me on a date?"

"Maybe?" She answered it more as a question than a response.

"Well damn," I muttered under my breath, taking in a shaky one.

She smiled, "Hey, you'll be fine. Come on, I'll help you get ready-- I have just the outfit in mind!"

I swore and she smacked my arm before dragging me into the closet and holding up random things against me and me furiously shaking my head for most of them.

When I rejected the last dress in the closet, she grow frustrated and threw something, a blob of grey coming at me. I caught it with ease and saw it was a cute grey knit sweater, "Hey this is cute."

She looked at it and huffed, "Fine, I guess I can work with this."

Gemma then snatched the sweater from me and continued digging through the closet until finally, she handed me the "complete masterpiece". I swear, she's insane.

In the end, I ended up wearing the sweater with a grey cami underneath with light wash jeans, grey combat boots that I'm borrowing from Gemma and a white scarf with pink flowers on it. She insisted on straightening my hair and doing my makeup and once she was done I could hardly recognize the girl in the mirror.

Thanking her, Hayden walked in then and smiled, "I know Gemma already told you, but, would you like to go on a date?"

I smiled, "I'd love to."

~

We were walking to wherever this date was. Hayden had grabbed a wooden basket and a blanket from the house and we were off. We'd only been walking five or ten minutes before he stopped me, "This is the place where I come to think a lot."

"A tree?" I question, my voice unsure.

He cracked a smile, "No. The cliff."

"What--" I was cut off as he pushed the branches of the tree aside, revealing a clearing, a small field really, that dropped off and gave way to the ocean. I gasped.

This time he smiled whole-heartedly, "I know, it's beautiful, isn't it?" I nodded.

The sun was about to set and the sky was a brilliant pink, wisps of orange and purple melting into it. I stared without conviction as the mellowness and beauty of it hit me.

"Come on," he took my hand and led me to the center of the clearing, laying out the blanket and setting down the picnic basket. I took a seat, following his lead.

He wrapped his arm around my shoulder and I think I surprised both of us when I rested my head on his shoulder, curling into him closer. His grip on my shoulder tightened a little and I felt his lips grace the top of my head. I smiled.

"God, I can't believe I almost lost you," he whispered.

My smile dropped as I thought back to it. It was mere days ago, yet it felt like a different life to me.

I plastered a smile back on my face and turned to look at him, "You could never lose me."

He leaned down and placed his lips on mine and they moved in sync.

The kiss was passionate and tender and needy and wanting all at once and I felt as though my entire being would combust just with this simple connection of lips.

~

I adjusted my head on his chest, my soreness not bugging me at all.

After our kiss, things had escalated and, well, long story short we had finished mating and now I was lying is his arms under the stars.

"You're so beautiful," Hayden whispered, tucking a piece of my hair behind my ear. I blushed madly.

"And you're so cheesy."

He chuckled throatily and somehow managed to pull me closer into him.

"Marry me," he mumbled into my hair before suddenly going rigid, freezing at what he just said. Perhaps out of fear, dread, incomprehension-- whatever, but that didn't matter. He had just proposed to me.

I nodded, "Okay."

"Really?" Hayden exclaimed, rolling over so he was on top of me.

I laughed, "Yes, Hayden, I'll marry you."

He grinned like the biggest idiot in the world and I'm sure I was too.

A/N: so that's the last chapter! Stay tuned for the epilogue ;) but for the meantime, I have a dilemma.

My dilemma is that when it came to voting for the covers, cover 3 received one vote more than cover 2, however cover two better depicts the theme/story of the sequel. Therefore, I will be going with cover 2 and I'm sorry to anyone who was rooting for cover 3.

Thank you for all of the support and I'll try to have the epilogue up within two weeks!

Sorry I'm so busy but I do have a newborn baby brother to help out with!